Anyone using Tata Sky plus?

[vineyard]

Is anyone using tata sky plus? It seems to have very interesting features like pause, record & rewind. I am planning to buy one. Can anyone provide me their feedback or experience?

[apoorva84]

its just been introduced...definitely looks and sounds interesting..guess we have to wait for some time till someone gets it and comes out with a review..

[ashu888ashu888]

to the OP: ...

well its a newly launched product, so it will take sum time for ur review to come in, both from users as well as from professional reviewers too..

but, yes it seems more to me like a Media Center Edition (of XP) bundled into a set top box..

wich will obviously hv an in built hdd so that till the time, user pauses the program, it gets recorded in bg and u can switch over to a new program.. i am thinking that a min of a 20GB or a 40GB hdd will be provided inside the set top box.. and this HDD will be constantly overwritten as new data (in terms of tv programs) are stored in it..
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Cheers n e-peace...

[advaitkunte]

will we be able to change the hard disk to a larger capacity? like about 500GB to 1TB?
how many max programs can we record at the same time??

[tgpraveen]

heres what i heard it will
have 500gb hdd
it will record in a proprietary format so cant connect with pc atleast not easily and costs around 8 or 9k so
for most most ppl on this forum a tv tuner card is a much better and flexible option

but for non techies this might be something worth looking into until tivo comes here

[ashu888ashu888]

Originally Posted by advaitkunte

will we be able to change the hard disk to a larger capacity? like about 500GB to 1TB?
how many max programs can we record at the same time??

well, i was jus guessing abt the HDD size.. also, the post above me says tat it will hv 500GB HDD capacity.. so hopefully its true..
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Cheers n e-peace...

[arvidh]

i got this service about a week ago now... first, it has a 160 GB hdd capable of recording upto 45 hours of video..
second, it costs upto 10000( including installation charges) for new subscribers and between 5k- 6k for existing subscribers( based on their package) ..... they take upto 3 days to get the uinit and fix it.

the recording, pause and rewind features are great! it can even record some shows automatically as the next episode is being aired...

But existing tatasky users will find tat changing channels takes a bit longer...there are a few bugs that would probably get resolved in a software update.

whats interesting in the back panel is the presence of a modem port, an ethernet port and a usb port....they are of no use yet though...

[sharad_ojha]

Hi all,

Its been 2 weeks now that I am using Tata Sky Plus. Before this, I had Dish TV PVR from last 2 and half years.

Let me tell you friends, Tata Sky Plus is far better than Dish TV DVR service in every sense. There were lot of problems that I have come across with Dish TV DVR, to name few - 1> Frequent reboot of STB 2> Few channels like Star TV, Discovery, ESPN are not shown on DishTV DVR for some legal issue. and lot more
But Tata Sky plus is at its best, STB software is very stable, recording, pause, rewind features are amazing and these features are pretty easy to use as compared to DishTV DVR...

And above all, Tata Sky Customer Service is amazing. Activation was done within jiffy... their follow-up for post-sale is great... Thumbs up for TATA SKY PLUS

[ashu888ashu888]

^^
thanx sharad and arvidh

well, jus tell me (im a newbie in this set to box and dth thing) tat (sharad) u told tat STB (set top box) needed frerquent reboot (in case of Dish TV)..wat does that mean ??

also,..once the channel has been set (say Espn on channel number 1 and Star Sports on say ch.10.) do these remain stable (on the same channels as set by us) .. or after every TV start, these channels change the position (as decided by the STB) .. ??

hope u got my point,.,.
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Cheers n e-peace...

[sharad_ojha]

hi ashu,

well, by frequent reboot, I mean DishTV DVR gets hang very frequent for no reason and the only way to make it work is reboot (turn it off and then on again)

To answer your question on channels, all DTH (Tata, big tv, digital tv, dish tv) have fixed channel numbers. What I mean to say is that you do not have to assign channel numbers to ESPN, STAR... They will have fixed position and u will get seperate remote for set top box. So, your tv will get output from set top box on its one of the AV input. Set top box are intelligent enough to retain channel listing even if you turn your TV or Set top box off and start again. So, turning TV off wudn't have any effect on STB.

I hope that answers your question. Let me know if you have more questions on DTH ( I have been using it from 8 years now )

[maindola]

You need not to buy this product in order to enjoy this feature. There are ceratin model of TV available that can do this for u. One is from LG.

[ashu888ashu888]

hi ashu,

well, by frequent reboot, I mean DishTV DVR gets hang very frequent for no reason and the only way to make it work is reboot (turn it off and then on again)

To answer your question on channels, all DTH (Tata, big tv, digital tv, dish tv) have fixed channel numbers. What I mean to say is that you do not have to assign channel numbers to ESPN, STAR... They will have fixed position and u will get seperate remote for set top box. So, your tv will get output from set top box on its one of the AV input. Set top box are intelligent enough to retain channel listing even if you turn your TV or Set top box off and start again. So, turning TV off wudn't have any effect on STB.

THanx alot Sharad was really simple to understand.. btw,

1.) currently i hv a cable connection wich is charging me Rs.285/- a month.. so if i switch over to a DTH service, will tat be cheaper ??? (even if im able to save Rs.50 per month) then i'll be happy ..

2.) do we get all the international channels too ?? apart from the ones offerred by the local cable wallas /? like say i wanna hv all the sports channels - Sky sports 1,2 etc.. so is that also possible ??? (apart from channels like espn, star, neo, dd sports, ten sports etc..)

[sharad_ojha]

Hi Ashu,

To answer your question no 1, it depends what all channels you want to see. DTH provider provides channels in different packages. So, I am sure if you want to have regular entertainment channels like Sony,Zee, Star, Colors plus all sports channel, it is going to cost you somewhere around 325/- per month. So, it is not cheaper than cable in any case. But you enjoy DVD quality pictures and lot of interactive services with that.

For question no 2, no they don't have sky sports besides regular sports channel. But, in future depending on the bandwidth availability on their satellites, they may add international channels...

So, its all on you to decide which channels you want to subscribe for and the amount you wish to pay to DTH for these channels.

[adityagarwal]

Well , I actually have it AND I surely enjoy the expereince ......
Specifications....
1. 160 GB HDD
2. Ethernet , line in & USB port (connection services will be opened later)
3. CA Module Slot
4. Rf connector (you'll need it rarely)
5. Component slots AND co-axial
6. MPEG - 4 compression technology
7. Ability to record 2 programs at a time , if you watch one of them or no one.
Or
Ability to record 1 program at a time if you watch another channel that isn't set to record
Or
Ability to record 2 programs at a time and watch a previously recorded program.


Soon , Tata Sky will be providing Internet connectivity and ability to record 4 programs at a time . HDD with 100 hrs. approx. (320 GB) will be available soon . CA modules will also be available . HD quality picture will be introduced . I suggest that you buy it . It can hook you up for hours if you watch TV . All over it is quite cool without hanging or digicard problems.

[chooza]

Originally Posted by sharad_ojha

hi ashu,

well, by frequent reboot, I mean DishTV DVR gets hang very frequent for no reason and the only way to make it work is reboot (turn it off and then on again)

To answer your question on channels, all DTH (Tata, big tv, digital tv, dish tv) have fixed channel numbers. What I mean to say is that you do not have to assign channel numbers to ESPN, STAR... They will have fixed position and u will get seperate remote for set top box. So, your tv will get output from set top box on its one of the AV input. Set top box are intelligent enough to retain channel listing even if you turn your TV or Set top box off and start again. So, turning TV off wudn't have any effect on STB.

I hope that answers your question. Let me know if you have more questions on DTH ( I have been using it from 8 years now )

Hi, I am using DishTV, but never found any thing like hang. yes, many time, chennels are not shown, and Continal ACcess message is shown, but I agree that TATA Sky is far better than Dish TV in every thing. I am also planning to switch TATA SKY PLUS.

[sharad_ojha]

Originally Posted by chooza

Hi, I am using DishTV, but never found any thing like hang. yes, many time, chennels are not shown, and Continal ACcess message is shown, but I agree that TATA Sky is far better than Dish TV in every thing. I am also planning to switch TATA SKY PLUS.

I was referring to Dish TV DVR box for frequent hang and reboot and you are talking about normal Dish TV set top box. Dish TV DVR is same as Tata Sky Plus and Dish TV has it from last 3 years but comes with lot of problems...

So TATA SKY PLUS is better in every sense compare to Dish TV DVR